Patients With Diabetes More Likely to Experience Adverse Financial Outcomes

MONDAY, July 28, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Patients with type 2 diabetes may experience substantially more adverse financial outcomes compared with patients without diabetes, according to a study published online July 28 in JAMA Network Open.

Matthew Pesavento, Ph.D., from The Ohio State University in Columbus, and colleagues investigated the association of type 2 diabetes and adverse financial outcomes. The analysis included electronic health records linked to credit records for 166,285 adults with at least one medical encounter at a primary care medical center (from Oct. 1, 2017, to Dec. 31, 2021). 

The researchers found that for patients with versus without diabetes, estimated probabilities were significantly higher for any adverse financial outcomes (64.5 versus 49.9 percent), below-prime credit scores (59.7 versus 45.9 percent), medical collections (36.9 versus 23.9 percent), nonmedical collections (38.4 versus 27.7 percent), delinquent debt (23.3 versus 15.6 percent), debt charge-offs (15.4 versus 10.1 percent), bankruptcy filings (2.1 versus 1.4 percent), and foreclosures (0.5 versus 0.3 percent). Overall, among patients of Black race, enrolled in Medicaid, of Hispanic ethnicity, younger than 65 years, without earned income, and of female sex, the adjusted prevalence of adverse financial outcomes was higher.

“This information also may inform holistic treatment approaches that might ease the financial vulnerability of individuals with diabetes,” the authors write.

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